Austin FC Stays Alive in Playoff Race With Unbeaten Streak

Austin FC’s refusal to give up on a once-thought-lost 2026 season is growing more impressive by the week.

Last Saturday, the Verde and Black trekked up to Frisco to do battle with Copa Tejas rivals FC Dallas – one of this season’s top contenders in the Western Conference – and fought to a valuable (if not sexy) 0-0 draw. Brad Stuver came up with four big saves, secured his fifth clean sheet of the season, and Austin FC extended its unbeaten run in MLS play to a head-turning seven consecutive games.

To some degree, the result was made even more impressive by the fact that Davy Arnaud, the interim head coach largely responsible for turning Austin FC’s season around, was absent from the match, attending to a family emergency with the club’s full support. In stepped assistant coach Terry Boss, who kept the Verde and Black organized from the technical area. 

“For me as an assistant coach, you know, and the rest of the staff, it’s our obligation to be able to step up so Davy can take care of his family the way he needs to,” Boss said. “We try to keep it as business as usual. The [players] are so supportive. They love Davy so much, and I think they definitely had a little bit extra motivation to play for Davy and what he’s going through.”

As long as Austin FC continues to avoid losses, the club is going to remain in a crowded mix for the final playoff places in the West. Heading into this weekend’s packed slate of matches, only four points separate seven clubs from positions 8 to 14. (Places 1-9 qualify for some form of postseason competition.) 

That sets up a massive clash at Q2 Stadium Saturday night against San Diego FC, another club in that middling group. This is must-win territory for the Verde and Black, in large part because of what the schedule looks like immediately following the San Diego match. ATX will have to battle Nashville SC, LAFC, and the Vancouver Whitecaps in three straight matches against teams with legitimate MLS Cup aspirations.

“We’re seven games [unbeaten], and we should do everything we can to continue this streak, but of course, it’s getting closer and closer,” said midfielder Besard Sabovic. “The season’s ending soon, so we need to start winning if we’re going to make it to the playoffs, which is everyone’s goal.”

Austin FC Leads MLS in GAM

Late last week, Major League Soccer published updated roster profiles for all 30 clubs, as well as updated figures revealing how much General Allocation Money (GAM) each club has available to spend this coming offseason.

The initial figure published for Austin FC was $1,970,454, which ranked just outside the league’s top 10. However, the club was quick to clarify on its social media channels that, as a result of the August trade sending Owen Wolff to Sporting Kansas City for cash, the club’s total GAM will increase to $4,970,454 on Sept. 30. This would elevate Austin FC to No. 1 on the GAM chart.

There’s no trophy that comes with that, but it does mean new ATX sporting director Khaled El-Ahmad will have plenty of financial flexibility as he begins building out his vision for the club’s roster going forward into 2027 and beyond.

This article appears in September 25 • 2026.